The disposal of hazardous and radioactive waste materials is of extreme importance. Federal and state laws and requirements covering such disposals are particularly severe and stringent due to the dangers to plant and animal life if the desired standards are not met and the hazardous or radioactive materials become exposed to the environment. Because of the potential dangers, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission has not only identified the hazardous and radioactive materials to date, which list is continually being amended and updated, but has set forth specific standards and requirements for protecting the environment against such waste materials. The resulting laws and regulations are set forth in 10 CFR, particularly sections 1-199. Other regulations relating to transportation, packaging, labeling and identifying hazardous and radioactive materials are also found in 40 CFR 1-799 and 49 CFR 100-177. Other publications which relate to classifying, indexing and discussing radioactive and hazardous waste materials include DOE/LLW-14T publication "Waste Classification, A Proposed Methodology For Classifying Low-Level Radioactive Waste", Dec. 1982, DOE/LLW-17T, "Survey Of Chemical And Radiological Indexes Evaluating Toxicity", March 1983, FW-874, "Hazardous Waste Land Treatment", April 1983 and FW-872 "Guide To The Disposal Of Chemically Stabilized and Solidified Waste", Sept. 1982.
It is the common practice to process liquid hazardous or radioactive materials by adding absorbents in an attempt to enhance handling and transportation, as well as eventual storage thereof. The materials that have been used heretofore include diatomaceous earth, vermiculite or expanded mica such as zonolite and krolite, portland and gypsum cements, as well as clay materials such as calcium bentonites. A problem with such materials is that only a relatively small amount of liquid can be absorbed or otherwise treated with less than satisfactory results. For example, liquid materials are desirably transported and disposed of in 55 gallon drums. However, it has been found with the use of these absorbents, solid compositions cannot be achieved or if temporarily achieved, liquid separation occurs during transportation or storage. Any separated or free-standing liquids are especially undesirable because of the potential danger of leakage from a ruptured or opened container. It is to the substantial elimination of such problems that the present invention is directed.
In prior co-pendin application Ser. No. 743,057, filed July 10, 1985, (abandoned) is disclosed an improved method of substantially solidifying hazardous or radioactive aqueous liquid compositions using a special sodium montmorillonite high in sodium content. As effective as that material is in achieving desired solidification of aqueous radioactive or hazardous compositions, its suitability for use with water-based or aqueous compositions containing large amounts of dissolved solids, especially those exceeding about 20,000 parts per million is substantially diminished. Moreover, the sodium montmorillonite is not as effective in solidifying the hazardous or radioactive organic liquids such as polyols or polyglycols, or other similar water soluble or miscible organic liquids and aqueous or hydrocarbon mixtures thereof. It is to the substantial solidification of such liquid materials that the present invention is directed.